Saturday, August 18, 2007

- King of Kong hero Steve Wiebe is making a world record attempt this Sunday in Austin and you can be there.

- Stephen Daldry is back. His next, The Reader, is to star Nicole Kidman and Ralph Fiennes and was scripted by David Hare. This sounds like cinema for people who don't really like cinema let alone understand it. These sort of smug, vainglorious 'prestige' productions are a blot on the landscape of film. Alfred Hitchcock, Alan Clarke and Alexander Mackendrick are turning in their graves.

- The former Louisiana film comissioner has been charged with taking bribes by 'abusing a series of tax credits'.

- Dan Fogler has been explaining his upcoming turn as Hitchcock and how the film has a lot in common with Shakespeare - or, for that matter, George Lucas - In Love.

- Fangoria has the specs for both Fido and Captivity on DVD. I think the DVD audience are going to help Fido become a small cult; I think Captivity is going to slowly fade away. Not having seen either, I can't comment on how fair this is.

- The Hannah Montana tie-in videogame for Nintendo DS looks too good to be true. How come such an accomplished title got linked in with such a throw away license?

- Paul Bettany and Thomas Kretschmann are the latest signatories on the heap of Young Victoria contracts.

- Is the fiction film version of King of Kong going to star Johnny Depp and Greg Kinnear? Or Ed Norton and Nathan Fillion? It's going to be some combination of that little lot, if director Seth Gordon gets his way.

- Miyazaki wanted the theme tune to Ponyo to be something "which all generations can sing" and, of course, he got his wish. Apparently, the lyrics repeat "Pony-o, Pony-o, Ponyo", in a style rather like the Totoro theme.

- Tom Tykwer's The International is to reteam him with X Filme Creative. Clive Owen, Naomi Watts and Armin Mueller Stahl are to star.

- Alex Cox makes some good points about the UK Film Council in his new column for The Guardian.

- Is the next Superman film to be pushed back to accomodate the Justice League film? Well, maybe - but I really, really hope not.